WSOU presents Wreck the Halls concert series

Alyssa Schirm

7 Dec 2017

Twenty years ago, the metalcore band Hatebreed released their first album and WSOU is commemorating the band’s anniversary by holding “Wreck the Halls,” a series of three concerts at the Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, N.J. Hatebreed, one of the most prominent bands played on WSOU, will be headlining the first show of the series on Dec. 9, and the final two shows will feature the band Clutch on Dec. 28 and the band Thursday on Dec. 30.

Garren Lewis, a senior history major and program director at WSOU, said that all the featured bands are played often on the station and the idea for the concert series stemmed from their popularity.

WSOU is holding a concert series in honor of the 20th anniversary of the band Hatebreed.Photo via Facebook/WSOU/89.5 FM

“We had three ‘WSOU Presents’ shows for (Dec.) with three bands that are the bread and butter of WSOU programming,” Lewis said. “It was a couple weeks ago when we came up with the idea that they’re high in demand and why not put them together as one concert series.”

Lewis also said that WSOU expects a lot of students to come to the event since WSOU concerts normally attract a number of students.

“They do usually have a big turnout. I’ve been to a lot of them and I’ve never seen one where there wasn’t a turnout,” Lewis said. He added that the concerts attract not just students on campus, but others as well.

“It’s always a little harder for WSOU to get traction on campus with students. I’m more known on the parkway than I am on campus,” Lewis said. “If you’re a fan of metal and loud rock then you’re probably going to be attending it.”

Jillian Yarznbowicz, a junior visual and sound media major, said that although she was unfamiliar with the bands, she would consider attending the concerts.

“I’d honestly be pretty interested in attending the concert series,” she said. “I actually live fairly close to the venue and even though I haven’t heard of these bands, sometimes having a concert be your first time listening to and experiencing an artist can be a lot of fun.”

She also said that as a transfer student the concert would be an opportunity for her to become more acquainted with Seton Hall and WSOU events.

Laura Colantonio, a senior marketing and interactive multimedia double major, said that because she doesn’t know the bands, she wouldn’t be interested in the event. However, she would definitely consider attending more WSOU events in the future.

“I am president of the Photography Club on campus, so it would be cool to do some sort of co-sponsorship where we could cover the event and be able to take photos behind the scenes,” Colantonio said.

Lewis echoed Colantonio’s sentiments about student attendance. “If you’re not a fan of loud rock, that would be the biggest reason you wouldn’t go. Lewis said. “With that being said, I think it’s a fairly diverse lineup of bands.”

Tickets for each show of the Wreck the Halls concert series start at $20 and can be purchased on the Starland Ballroom website.